XP and dv9500 Post on Jul 24, 2009

I ran into a problem with my new(ish) laptop, I've been running Ubuntu 9 on it since I got it, and previous owner put the Windows 7 RC (no link intended) against my wishes. So the RC finally expired, and I'm left without Windows on my laptop. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal, but I have a Mackie Onxy 400f and Canon XL2 which can both connect and record on the laptop via the IEEE1394 (firewire) interface.

The problem

So I own a copy of XP Professional (from when it first came out), and I try to install it. Problem is, the drives are SATA and the XP installed doesn't recognize there's hard drives in the machine. I looked at a couple guides and opted not to build my own XP, and instead downloaded Vista Premium, for which there is a key on the bottom of the laptop. I've been resisting this to the bitter end, even trying to get a copy of OSx86 running instead (to no avail).

So I finally install Vista (actually my brother Dan did), update all the garbage, install the software, do all the typical 'fresh OS' stuff, and run my software to interface with the XL2, and find out there's a bloody bug in Vista that the firewire doesn't work properly or something stupid. The computer (rather, Vista) won't recognize my damn camera. Not much of a remote monitor for shooting then, is it. We've really made technological advancements when we sell people a feature like 'Firewire' on a laptop, and the operating system can't even utilize it. Great work, Microsoft.

The fix

So I downloaded XP Dark which promised to have SATA drivers for my laptop. I'm not into pirating Microsoft stuff, but if the bastards can't give me a working Vista, and won't let me install my XP Pro (it was $1000 US new), then they can kiss my arse.
XP Dark installed like a dream (it gave me an install option for SATA), it was way faster than a standard XP install, and relatively shiny. The last problem I ran into was a whole whack of missing drivers. Like, missing drivers for just about everything. No ethernet, wireless or otherwise. The only thing that did work was the silly webcam!

Anyway, I rummaged around a bit, and tried finding drivers for some stuff, but was having limited success. I found this page with link to a Super Awesome XP Driver Pack specifically for me laptoppy! All the drivers installed perfectly (thanks again, Dan) and we're now on our way to on-location shooting heaven!

Cheers,

Aaron